88 MINUTES is the time left given for forensic psychiatrist and college professor Jack Gramm (Al Pacino), to live from an anonymous cell phone call.  The plot is simple with serial killer, Jon Forster (Neal McDonough) sentenced to death row based on witnesses coaxed by Gramm.  The same caller appears to be Forster’s copycat killer, doing away one by one of the victims that somehow appear linked to Gramm’s activities.

It is not surprising to see what attracted Pacino to the role of Jack Gramm.  A loner, smart, rich and always able to get any beautiful lady, the script allows an ego trip for Pacino.  Pacino does a good job thought carrying the entire film on his shoulders.  Writer Gary Scott Thompson’s (THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS, HOLLOW MAN) does no justice to the females.  They fall for Gramm for the inane reason of his success.  The only decent female character is Gramm’s ex-wife and associate Shelly (Amy Brenneman), who is later revealed to be a lesbian.  The reasoning is the film’s plot device as she, through sexual temptation allows the criminal to access Gramm’s confidential files.  Worse is the segment with Gramm’s forgiveness – which goes totally against his character as hard hardened criminologist. 

As an action thriller, 88 MINUTES could have been edited more effectively.  For one, there are too many of Gramm’s women to be taken into account.  The film actually runs about 88 minutes from the time Gramm first receives the phone call.  88 MINUTES lacks more tension.  Avnet has directed only one other thriller – the mediocre Richard Gere vehicle RED CORNER.  The only Asian influence here is the twin (Asian) murdered by Forster.  One wishes for more humour in the script to break the monotony.  The best line is the one offered to a paranoid Gramm about a security guard Johnny D’Franco (Canada’s own Brendan Fletcher) who happens to know all about Gramm’s past: “He is not a serial killer; he is a serial groupie!”

Avnet’s movie has a feel for films in the 70’s.  From the scene of Gramm’s baby sister (shown in flashback) in bell bottoms flying a kite to the political incorrectness of depiction of women, Avnet’s film or Thompson’s script does not appear to want to defend its position.  If 88 MINUTES succeeded as a taut exciting thriller from start to finish with the audience constantly glancing at their watches worrying about Gramm’s demise, all would have been forgiven.  One now understands the reason behind Sony Pictures only just releasing the film theatrically.  88 MINUTES was out in DVD in Europe as early as last year – which implies current downloadability from the net.  Expect Sony Pictures to make a loss on this Pacino vehicle.